20 Years Later, Mission: Impossible Still Hasn’t Topped The Franchise’s Best Villain

The Mission: Impossible franchise continues to top itself with each new stunt, but Mission: Impossible III‘s villain remains unbeaten as the franchise’s best. While Tom Cruise leads the Mission: Impossible movies, there has been a rotating rogues’ gallery of villains he has faced off with in each movie. Solomon Lane (Sean Harris) and Gabriel (Esai Morales) are the only two villains to have returned for more than one installment. However, they were still unable to top Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the villain in Mission: Impossible III.

The original Mission: Impossible had Hunt’s enemy taking on a personal approach, with his mentor Jim Phelps (Jon Voight) revealed as the traitor. Henry Cavill’s Walker in Mission: Impossible – Fallout was Hunt’s more physically imposing antagonist. However, Davian has held the mantle as the Mission: Impossible franchise’s best villain thanks to his cold effectiveness and an outstanding performance from an Oscar-winning actor at the height of his career.

Owen Davian Is Always One Step Ahead Of Ethan Hunt

Hunt Has Never Been So Outplayed In A Mission: Impossible Movie

As effective a spy as Ethan Hunt is, none of the missions in Mission: Impossible go as planned. However, when Hunt takes on Owen Davian in Mission: Impossible III, it shows just how unprepared Hunt and his IMF team were for this criminal mastermind. Hunt is initially lured into Davian’s world in order to rescue his former IMF trainee, Lindsey Farris (Keri Russell). However, before Hunt even shows up, Davian had already sealed Lindsey’s fate, detonating a device implanted in her head, in one of the most tragic deaths in the Mission: Impossible franchise.

From there, Davian proves time and time again that he is the one who is in charge, even when he is taken by surprise. Hunt and his team pull off an elaborate plan to capture Davian. However, Davian immediately proves himself a formidable villain simply with how little he seems to care that he has been taken. It is like an inconvenience to him more than a real danger. He quickly throws Hunt off his game with his complete confidence that he will not be staying long in their custody.

Davian’s confidence is well-placed, as he quickly breaks out of IMF custody and wastes no time in abducting Hunt’s wife, Julia (Michelle Monaghan). Not only that, but he uses Hunt’s skills for Davian’s own benefit, forcing Hunt to steal the Mission: Impossible MacGuffin known as the Rabbit’s Foot. Of course, Hunt wins in the end, but it feels more like a case of the hero getting lucky, as Davian was in control every step of the way.

Owen Davian Makes Things Personal & Raises The Stakes

Davian Targets Hunt Where It Hurts Him The Most

There have been other Mission: Impossible villains who have had a personal connection to Ethan Hunt before the movie begins, like Jim Phelps from Mission: Impossible or Gabriel in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. However, Owen Davian asserts his power by quickly turning things personal for Hunt, recognizing his weak spot is caring for those who mean a lot to him. Davian proves how ruthless he is with the death of Lindsey. However, he also tests Hunt by carelessly mocking her death and insisting:

I mean, you saw what I did to your little blonde friend at the factory, right? Well, that was nothing. That was… fun.

Once Davian sees how much that remark got to Hunt, he seems to have identified the pressure point he can use to beat him. After threatening to kill Julia in terrible ways, the moment Davian takes her, Hunt is at his mercy. While it certainly makes things personal, it is also the most vulnerable Hunt has ever seen in these movies, at times begging Davian for Julia’s safety. However, what makes it all the more intense is that it doesn’t seem personal at all for Davian, but rather just part of his business.

Philip Seymour Hoffman Gives A Chilling Performance

The Oscar-Winner Commands The Screen With His Subtle Performance

Philip Seymour Hoffman had just won an Oscar for his transformative performance as Truman Capote in Capote when he was cast as Owen Davian in Mission: Impossible III. It is a testament to his incredible skills as an actor that Hoffman delivered these two performances back to back, as Capote’s “life of the party” charm is seemingly the exact opposite of the quiet menace of Owen Davian. However, it is that quietness that makes Davian such a compelling threat, and Hoffman commands the screen without saying a word.

While Hoffman has plenty of explosive performances in this amazing career, he chooses to play the villain in a blockbuster franchise with an eerie calm. The way he looks at his enemies or carries himself when seemingly in danger makes him seem untouchable. It also gives the sense that he is completely capable of all of the terrible things he threatens.

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Davian’s physical confrontation with Hunt is brief, with the two only fighting for a few moments at the end of Mission: Impossible III. However, Hoffman’s performance makes it seem as though Davian is a threat at all times and a kind of threat Hunt has never faced before or since.